A Study on the Relationship between Achievement Motivation and Academic Proficiency

A Study on the Relationship between Achievement Motivation and Academic Proficiency Josmin Teresa Jose LICTE, Mahatma Gandhi University

Abstract: This study aims at finding out the relationship between the academic proficiency of senior secondary students and their achievement motivation. Conclusions are drawn from a sample of 25 senior secondary students of Sacred Heart Girls’ High School, Ramapuram, who were administered the Deo-Mohan Achievement Motivation Scale. This result was then compared with their academic scores collected from their school records. The test revealed that students with high levels of achievement motivation tended to perform better academically than those having poor levels of achievement motivation. This also showed that levels of achievement motivation in students is indeed related to academic achievement.

Introduction

Achievement motivation is an integrative perspective based on the premise that performance motivation results from the way broad components of personality are directed towards performance. As a result, it includes a range of dimensions that are relevant to success at work but which are not conventionally regarded as being part of performance motivation. The emphasis on performance seeks to integrate formerly separate approaches as need for achievement with, for example, social motives like dominance. Personality is intimately tied to performance and achievement motivation, including such characteristics as tolerance for risk, fear of failure, and others.
According to Atkinson (1964), Achievement Motivation is “the strength of tendency to approach the task, plus the strength of tendency to avoid the task”. People with high levels of achievement motivation show an eagerness towards performing a particular task, are consistent, and usually focus their entire attention on the task that needs to be completed.
Academic Achievement, according to Good (1973), is the knowledge attained or skill developed in school subjects, usually designed by test scores or by marks designated by the teacher or both. Achievement Motivation has a direct effect on the academic achievement of an individual.

Objectives of the Study

This study is hence important and empirically justified both theoretically as well as practically for it discovers the importance of self-concept in the development of academic achievement. This applied research is widely used in following ways:

1. To study the extent of achievement motivation among the senior secondary students of Sacred Heart Girls’ High School, Ramapuram.
2. To find out the academic performance of the same students from their school
   academic records.
3. To compare the levels of achievement motivation and academic proficiency among
   the students and find out a relation between them both.
4. To be able to predict the academic proficiency of a student based on his/her achievement motivation levels and vice-versa.

Methodology

The purpose of the current study is to find out the relationship between two variables, viz achievement motivation and academic achievement, among the senior secondary school students. A random sample of 25 students from the senior secondary wing of the school was selected and administered the Deo-Mohan Test. The students’ academic performance data was collected from their school records.

Sampling

A random sample of 25 students from the senior secondary wing of the school was selected for the test. As the school in question  is a girls’ school, there were no male respondents. The students showed a lot of diversity in terms of their academic scores. They belonged to various stratas of the society, as well as had pluralistic linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Tools Used

The Deo-Mohan Achievement Motivation Scale was used to find out the levels of achievement motivation among the students. This scale covers three areas such as academic factors, factors of general field, and social interests. The scale contains 50 items, to which the respondents have to choose from among 5 options of “Always”, “Frequently”, “Sometimes”, “Rarely”, and “Never”.
For collecting the data relating to the academic achievement of the students, the records of their final exam results were collected from the school authorities.

Scoring

The scales consisted of 50 questions of which 16 are reverse worded, which meant that they would be marked differently. They would get 4 marks for “Always”, 3 marks for “Frequently”, 2 marks for “Sometimes”, 1 mark for “Rarely”, and “Never” would get them 0 marks. The maximum score obtainable is 200.

Data Collection and Statistical Techniques

The students were given questionnaire with instructions to fill it properly without leaving any questions. The filled up questionnaires were collected for analysis and interpretation. For achieving right result of the study, various statistical techniques such as mean and standard deviation, were used to analyze the whole data.

Result

After administering the test and collecting the results, the mean and standard deviations were found to be able to analyze the data.
The mean score was found to be 51.30, while the standard deviation came out to be 19.167. Using these data, the below average score (32.14 and below), the average score (32.14 to 70.46) and above average score (70.46 and above) were calculated and tabulated for an easy comparison with the academic achievement data collected from the school records.

Table 1. The Test Scores obtained in the Deo-Mohan Test compared with the Academic Achievement Data of the Students.

Academic Grade/ Category	Total	A+	A	B+	B	C+	C	D+	D	E
Below Average	4	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	1
Average	16	0	1	3	1	7	2	2	0	0
Above Average	5	0	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

It is quite clear from the above data that most of the students with Above Average Achievement Motivation scores have done excellently in their papers- all five of them have A grades. When it comes to the Average score holders, the grades range from A to D+, with the maximum getting a C+ grade in their exams. The Below Average score holders seem to have done below average in their papers, with their grades ranging from C and E.

Conclusion

The study was undertaken to learn about the achievement motivation among senior secondary school students and how it was related to their academic performance. From the results of the study, a number of conclusions can be drawn.

1. About 64% of the respondents have average levels of achievement motivation, while 16% have poor levels of achievement motivation.
2. About 20% of the respondents have high achievement motivation, which is directly reflected in their academic scores.
3. All the 100% of the above average score holders show a consistent track record of getting A grades in their exams.
4. The average achievement score holders have an average academic track record, with their grades ranging from A to D+.
5. All the below average score holders showed poor academic performances, with their grades ranging from C to E, with almost 50% of them getting D and E.

Hence it can be concluded that those with high levels of achievement motivation are more driven and show excellent academic results, while those with average or below average scores are less likely to show such a result. It can be further concluded that the levels of
achievement motivation have a direct impact on the academic performance of senior secondary school students.

References

• Abraham, Amit. (2011). General Psychology. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Education Private Limited
• Ames, C. A. (1992). Classrooms: Goals, Structures, and Student motivation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 84, 261–271.
• Dweck, C. S. (1986). Motivational Processes Affecting Learning. American Psychologist, 41, 1040–1048
• S. Narayana. (2015). Self Esteem and Achievement Motivation among the Students of Standard Nine. (Unpublished M. Ed. Dissertation). Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam.